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Overview

Charles R. Conner Natural History Museum

The Conner collection dates back almost to the opening of the university as an agricultural college in 1890. The first specimens exhibited in Pullman had originally been exhibited at the Chicago World’s Fair in 1893, and over the course of the century many traditional specimens were added to the collection. Presently the entire collection contains more than 65,000 specimens. Visit the Conner Museum site.

Inside the museum

The Marion Ownbey Herbarium

The Marion Ownbey Herbarium is among the larger herbaria of the Pacific Northwest. The collection consists of nearly 400,000 specimens of vascular and nonvascular plants and lichens. The herbarium includes plants from around the world, although those of the Pacific Northwest, Great Basin, and California form the majority of the collection. Visit the Ownbey Herbarium site.

photo of plant at the herbarium

Plant Growth Chamber Facility

Constructed in 1999, the newest of the School of Biological Sciences research space for plant growth is the Plant Growth Chamber facility in the basement of Eastlick Hall (B-97). All chambers are computer controlled and network-connected to a server for the continuous collection of environmental data. This facility consists of 23 plant growth chambers varying in size from 9 square feet to 36 square feet. In addition, there are four 19 cubic foot tissue culture chambers. All chambers are temperature controlled (5-40ÂșC) and humidity is controlled between ambient and 85%. Light intensity levels can be varied between dark and 1,600 micromoles/m2/s. Two chambers are equipped with capabilities for CO2 enrichment up to 2,000 ppm and elevated UV-B up to 20 times ambient. Automatic irrigation can also be programmed.

plants growing in the winter

Greenhouses

The School of Biological Sciences has 3 modern greenhouses: one in Abelson Hall, one in Murrow Hall and a third in the Steffen Center.

The Abelson Hall Greenhouse, completed in 1989, is a 4,000 square foot aluminum and glass rooftop facility occupying the seventh floor and consists of nine independently controlled compartments.

The Murrow Greenhouse, built in the 1920s, is the oldest greenhouse on the WSU Pullman campus. Constructed of steel and glass, it is approximately 1,000 square feet and houses a portion of the permanent botanical teaching collection.

The Steffen Center Greenhouse, built in 1995, is a 3,000 square foot galvanized steel and polycarbonate greenhouse divided into four 750 square foot compartments. This facility is used predominantly for research but is also used for instruction.

Inside the greenhouse

Franceschi Microscopy and Imaging Center

The Franceschi Microscopy and Imaging Center (FMIC) is a research and educational facility for the imaging and ultrastructural study of biological and non-biological materials. It is a centralized facility available to all WSU researchers and students. The FMIC provides electron microscopy and light microscopy equipment for observation and analysis of a diverse array of specimens. Visit the Franceschi Microscopy and Imaging Center site.

Tools for microscopy.